Banana Walnut Green Tea Smoothie

In the last couple of months, I have noticed my skin has been awful - like teenage angst awful with a pre-midlife crisis twist.  My history with medications and creams for my dermatological issues is not all that great and my mode lately is to try to reduce chemicals as opposed to adding more, so I have been on the hunt for a more natural remedy.  I have done a decent amount of reading and am pretty confident at this point that too much sugar and not enough exercise are the biggest factors contributing to my current issue.  An injury is partly the cause of my lack of exercise (but only partly) and the sugar, well, let's just say that I wasn't at my best this holiday season but my sweet tooth certainly was.  My body alkalinity is all out of whack and my plan is to attack it with some high antioxidant leafy greens, low sugar fruits, and healthy nuts (Omega 3s) and seeds to name a few.  This shake fits the bill nicely...with others to follow.

INGREDIENTS:

• banana (frozen if you prefer)
• 6 oz green tea (I let mine cool a bit but am generally too impatient to cool it all of the way when I brew the tea myself)
• 1/8 cup of walnuts
• 1/8 tsp vanilla
• handful of baby kale
• 1/4 tsp chia seeds
• honey (optional)
• ice (optional - if you used cool tea and a frozen banana, you may not need ice)

DIRECTIONS:

Place all ingredients into a high powered blender and blend until smooth.  (I use a Vitamix and gradually increase speed from 1-10 and then to high for about 45 seconds.)

Difficulty: easy

Time: a couple of minutes

Source: a combination of several ideas I found when researching 

Kale and Fontina Panini

When my family first started getting the bulk of our fresh veggies through a CSA, we had to open our minds and taste buds to some new flavors.  Kale - hailed as a super food - was one that I really wanted to like but had a hard time in doing so.  I tried it many different ways - kale chips, in smoothies, in combination with other greens, and more - but the first recipe that I tried that I absolutely loved that had kale in it was this one.  Honestly, you could use just about any cheese that you have, but we really enjoyed the not-so-cheap fontina as a special treat.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 3 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 8 cups chopped kale
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 8-10 slices country bread (1/4 inch thick), preferably whole wheat
• 1 cup fontina or Gruyere cheese, shredded
• 1-2 medium tomatoes

DIRECTIONS:

1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add onion and cook, stirring frequently, until golden brown, 5-7 minutes.  Add vinegar and cook until almost evaporated, about 1 minute.  Add garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds.  
2. Add kale, water and salt (the pan will be full).  Stir, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the kale is wilted and the water has evaporated, about 5 minutes.  Remove from heat.
3. To prepare panini: Preheat panini maker to high.  Coat one side of each slice of bread with cooking spray.  With the sprayed side down, spread the kale mixture on 4 slices of bread (about 1/2 cup per sandwich).  Top each with 1/4 cup cheese and 2 slices of tomato.  Top with the remaining bread, sprayed-side up.  Press in the panini maker until crispy, 3-5 minutes.

Note: If you do not have a panini maker, make these sandwiches in a skillet.  Place a medium pan on top of them and add four 15 oz cans to the pan to weigh it down.  Cook 2-3 minutes per side.

Difficulty: medium

Time:  ~40 minutes

Source: eatingwell.com magazine May/June 2014

Roasted Beet Pesto Pizza

Beets and I have a long and sordid history.  I will not go into details, but let's just say that though I don't mind the taste of beets, that is about all on which we agree.  In fact, I have declared myself "beet sensitive" without going to the point of saying that I am allergic.  And yet, I keep trying.  I want to like beets, and I want them to like me.  I guess I am stubborn like that.

I have actually requested substitutions for beets with my CSA, but recently there was a mistake and I received beets in my produce bag.  I decided that it was an opportunity to forge ahead with my relationship and give it another go.  I came across this beet pesto recipe and the accompanying pizza recipe that used it and I decided that pizza may just be our common ground.  I was so right.

The pesto appealed to me because the beets are roasted first and then combined with many other yummy ingredients.  When you then put it on naan flatbread and top it with mozarella, spinach (or kale), and goat cheese?  Mmmmm...a match made in heaven.  And for the record, my kids couldn't get enough of this and my mom, an avid beet hater, loved it, too!


INGREDIENTS:

Pesto:

• 1 cup red beets, chopped and roasted (about 1 medium beet) 
• 3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped 
• ½ cup walnuts, roasted 
• ½ cup parmesan cheese, grated 
• ½ cup olive oil 
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice 
• Salt to taste 

Pizza:

• Naan bread
• Mozzarella cheese
• spinach or kale
• Goat cheese
• Pesto from above

DIRECTIONS:

For the pesto:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. 
2. Wash and scrub the beet and pat it dry. Chop it into ½” cubes and place it on a sheet of foil. Wrap the chopped beet in foil, making a foil packet. Place the packet on a baking sheet. 
3. Roast in the oven for 50 minutes, or until beets are soft and juices are seeping out. Allow beets to cool completely. (I did this the day before I made the pesto, while I was making another meal.)
4. Add all ingredients except for the oil to a food processor or blender and pulse several times. 
5. Leaving the food processor (or blender) running, slowly add the olive oil until all ingredients are well combined. If the pesto is too thick for your blender to process, add a small amount of water until desired consistency is reached 

For the pizza:

1. Preheat oven to 415 degrees.
2. Spread the pesto on the Naan bread or pizza crust.  Top with Mozzarella, spinach, and goat cheese.
3. Bake 10-15 minutes or until cheese is melted appropriately.

Difficulty: easy, though a touch time-consuming if you don't plan ahead
Time: Pesto - Prep Time: 5 minutes, Cook Time: 50 minutes (there is also cooling time involved); Pizza - Prep Time: 2 minutes, Cook Time: 10-15

Source: http://www.theroastedroot.net/roasted-beet-pesto/

Marinated Kale Salad

My husband and I devoured this salad at a recent banquet. We even had a conversation about the salad with our table mates. I emailed the host on the drive home requesting this recipe.

The first time I made it I skimped on the infused vinegar and just used what I had at home; it was good, but when made as directed, it is amazing.  Kale is usually a product in my CSA.  I have used it for smoothies, baked chips, salads, and sauteed. This is by far my favorite use of kale.


INGREDIENTS:

Dressing

I forgot the Craisins.

• 1/3 cup fig infused vinegar
• 1/6 cup blood orange olive oil

Salad

• 1 bunch chopped kale
• 2/3 of a can of Mandarin oranges, reserve 3 T juice
• 1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted and chopped
• 1/3 cup Feta cheese
• 1/4 cup Craisins, chopped
• Salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:

1. Marinate kale in dressing overnight. If possible, shake container a few times.
2. Top with oranges, juice, Craisins, Feta cheese, and pine nuts.
3. Add salt and pepper if necessary. 

DIFFICULTY: Easy

TIME: 15 minutes, but needs to marinate overnight.

SOURCE: a friend from church